Born and raised in Hong Kong, my mother immigrated to the United States in 2002 to start a family, leaving behind her career, family, friends, and cultural homeland. She shared this immigration journey with me, demonstrating how food connects immigrants to their identity, cultural heritage, and local communities in the face of cultural bereavement.

This project is a narrative of the United States immigrant experience through the lens of Cantonese cuisine. With the pressure of acculturation upon gaining American citizenship, immigrants often sacrifice aspects of their cultural identity. To cope with this displacement, these individuals recreate a sense of self around food rituals, production, and consumption. These culinary traditions show us that food is nourishment for not only the body but also the heart and soul. The title of my thesis reflects the phrase often asked in Cantonese households as an expression of love and care: “Have you eaten yet?” 

In this design work, I utilize personal stories, shared experiences, and photographic documentation of the Cantonese-American community and cuisine to explore how foodways (the cultural, social, and economic practices surrounding food) are utilized by immigrants as a resilient tool for survival, connection, and cultural preservation. My research culminates in a series of zine guides, postcards, and installation design that act as a resource for preserving cultural identity and an invitation to experience authentic Cantonese culture through cuisine.

As a whole, my installation emulates the warmth of a Cantonese immigrant dining room, presenting food as a familial experience. Similar to cuisine, the home creates a sense of belonging after displacement. The objects adorning the space convey memories, cultural values, identity, and everyday practices. The cluttered arrangement of frames hints at the socioeconomic status, homesickness, and family first values of Cantonese immigrants. 

The overall goal of this project is to make visible the immigrant experience and support the ongoing practice that these displaced individuals undergo to maintain their cultural identity in the United States. 

I would like to thank the Institute of Scholarship in the Liberal Arts and the Liu Institute for Asia and Asian Studies for funding my research trips to Hong Kong and Chinatowns across the United States—Philadelphia, Manhattan, Queens, Chicago, and San Francisco.